The effect of blood sugar, therapy and blood pressure on lipoprotein profiles of diabetics in Trinidad & Tobago. Possible association with ischaemic heart disease.

The aim of this investigation was to examine the effects of fasting blood sugar, the type of therapy and blood pressure levels on lipoprotein profiles of diabetics in Trinidad and Tobago, and to determine how these biochemical and physiological risk factors may influence the development of ischaemic heart disease. Seven hundred (700) diabetic patients attending outpatient clinics at Sangre Grande and Port-of-Spain General Hospitals were surveyed. The data obtained in this study on the relationship of serum lipids to diabetic control support the hypothesis that poor control of blood sugar is conducive to accelerated atherosclerosis. Hypertensive patients and those maintained on insulin showed a greater predisposition to ischaemic heart disease (IHD) than did non-hypertensives and patients maintained on oral hypoglycaemic agents, respectively.